Samoa, A Hundred Years Ago And Long Before eBook

CHAPTER V.

GODS INFERIOR, OR HOUSEHOLD GODS.

1. ALOIMASINA—­Child of the Moon.

This was the name of a household god, and seen in
the moon. On the appearance of the new moon all
the members of the family called out: “Child
of the moon, you have come.” They assembled
also, presented offerings of food, had a united feast,
and joined in the prayer:

“Oh, child of the moon!
Keep far away
Disease and death.”

They also prayed thus before leaving the house to
go to battle:

“Oh, child of the moon!
Bury up your hollows
And stumps of trees
And lumpy stones
For our running at ease.”

2. APELESA—­Sacred fulness.

1. In one family this god was incarnate in the
turtle. While one of the family dared not partake,
he would help a neighbour to cut up and cook one;
only while he was doing that, he had a bandage tied
over his mouth lest some embryo turtle should slip
down his throat, grow up, and cause his death.

2. In another family Apelesa spoke at times through
an old man. When an oven of food was opened the
first basket was hung up on the outside of one of
the posts of the house for the god. If the rats,
or a dog, or any hungry mortal took it in the night,
it was supposed that Apelesa chose to come in that
form for his offering. He was also considered
the guardian of the family, and if any other gods came
about he frightened them away.

3. In another family a woman called Alaiava,
or means of entertainment, was priestess of
Apelesa. She prayed at parturition times, and
in cases of severe illness. Her usual mode of
acting the doctor was, first of all, to order down
all the cocoa-nut leaf window-blinds of one end of
the house. She then went into the darkened place.
Presently that end of the house shook as if by an earthquake,
and when she came out she declared what the disease
was, and ordered corresponding treatment; the result
was that, “some recovered, and some died.”

In this family the first basket of cooked food was
also sacred to the god, but their custom was to take
it and hang it up in the large house of the village
where passing travellers were accustomed to call and
rest. No one of the village dared to touch that
basket without risking the wrath of the god.
Any passing stranger, however, was as welcome
to partake as if he had been specially sent for it
by Apelesa.

3. ASOMUA—­First Day.

This was a household god, and particularly useful
to the family in detecting and telling out the name
of the thief when anything was missed. He was
called first day, as it was supposed that he
existed in the world before mortals.

4. LEATUALOA—­The long god, or the
centipede.

This was the name of a god seen in the centipede.
A tree near the house was the residence of the creature.
When any one of the family was ill, he went out with
a fine mat and spread it under the tree, and there
waited for the centipede to come down. If it came
down and crawled under the mat, that was a
sign that the sick person was to be covered over with
mats and buried. If, however, it crawled on the
top of the mat, that was a sign of recovery.